1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns handles for towable, wheeled luggage and, more particularly, a selectively rotatable handle assembly which provides ergonomically improved towing of such luggage items.
2. The Related Art
FIG. 1 depicts a conventional piece of towable luggage 10, which typically includes a pair of wheels 12 at its lower end and an extensible handle 14 comprising of a pair of telescopic tubes 16 that are joined at their upper ends by a static transverse handgrip 18. In use, the handle 14 is extended and the luggage 10 is tilted and towed in a direction generally perpendicular to the axis of the wheels 12. While generally satisfactory, this conventional handle construction requires the user to grasp the handgrip 18 with his/her wrist rotated nearly transverse to the towing direction. Such a position of the user's hand is uncomfortable, particularly with large or heavy luggage or where the luggage must be towed for long distances. Also, the static transverse handgrip 18 often does not position the luggage sufficient far from the user's body to prevent the user's feet from colliding with the luggage when the user is towing the luggage.
Numerous efforts have been made in the prior art to provide more ergonomically satisfactory handles, as evidenced, for example, by U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,265,307, 5,464,080, 5,890,570, 6,317,924, 6,434,790 and 6,470,533 and WO 01/52687. None of these earlier handles, however, fully meets the needs of the art, especially for towable, wheeled luggage having telescopically extensible handles. In particular, it is desirable to provide a handle assembly which facilitates extension and retraction of the handle, while concurrently permitting freedom of positioning of the handgrip portion to maximize user comfort and convenience in towing the luggage. It is also desirable that the handle assembly resist tipping over of the luggage upon encountering an obstacle, e.g., a curb, while being towed.